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Originally posted by Aikilove I know at least one more 7th dan, namely Ulf Evenas Shihan, Iwama Ryu, Sweden. He is Iwama ryu shihan over north Europe I believe and Paolo Corralini is shihan for south Europe.

Thanks to the help of Jim Baker Sensei (of Antarctica Aikikai fame...), I have included a new high-ranked sensei :
EDDIE HAGIHARA - USAF/Eastern Region - 7th Dan Aikikai, a former student at Hombu Dojo, under many famous masters, including Yoshimitsu Yamada Sensei.
Thanks, Jim!

"We are all teachers, and what we teach is what we need to learn, and so we teach it over and over again until we learn it".
Unknown author

Well his dojo is in Gothenburg and I live some 200 miles south of that in Lund, where I study Aikido in the local dojo. But Every time I get the chance (not so often I'm afraid) I try to take the opportunity to study under him.

This is the newest update on my Yudansha List, with two changes :
a) inclusion of the name of GWYNNE JONES; and
b) correction in the affiliation of KEVIN BLOK(Yoshinkai and not Aikikai, as placed previously).
And the list is :
Karl Geis - Fugakukai, Texas (USA), 10th Dan

SOME OBSERVATIONS :
A) This list does NOT compare organizations or ranking grades. It just presents high-ranked non-japanese yudansha, from 7th Dan on;
b) It expresses, of course, the author's bias, not necessarily the organization of the inductees; and
c) considering that this is a work in progress, every help, correction, addition, observation, is welcome!
Best

"We are all teachers, and what we teach is what we need to learn, and so we teach it over and over again until we learn it".
Unknown author

When I created my list of high-ranking non-japanese yudansha, its objective was to answer a request, from many people, to know who were them and from what organizations.
It involved quite a bit of research but, finally, it is a personal opinion : i only inducted those i believe, based on my own standards, to be worthy. In this aspect, organizations were much less important than the individuals. Some are universally respected, others are generally seen with caution. In one case, I considered just two people from an organization I didn't like, on the basis of the people, not the organization.
I've always stressed :
"SOME OBSERVATIONS :
A) This list does NOT compare organizations or ranking grades. It just presents high-ranked non-japanese yudansha, from 7th Dan on;
b) It expresses, of course, the author's bias, not necessarily the organization of the inductees; and
c) considering that this is a work in progress, every help, correction, addition, observation, is welcome!"
Recently, however, my respected friend, DENNIS HOOKER SHIHAN pointed to me that my list was organized by highest grade and so, inevitably, gave a false idea of a comparison between people and organizations.
Trying to improve it, I changed the disposition to separate organizations and place people in alphabetical order. I know it will not please everyone but it was the best I could do. I hope it will be for the best.
############################################

A last observation : Ranking are mainly important for organizations (Aikikai, Yoshinkai, etc...), that promote and give graduations. So, to say "grades are not important", when you belong to an organization, is not very coherent. But, as there is no standardization, each organization has its own criteria. Some grade to the 9th Dan, 8th, 7th, or less. That's another reason why it's impossible to "compare" them.
As we've said before, any help will be welcome!
Best

Last edited by Kami : 10-19-2001 at 06:01 PM.

"We are all teachers, and what we teach is what we need to learn, and so we teach it over and over again until we learn it".
Unknown author

Ubaldo - As part of your list you have John Allen (7th Dan), West Virginia, associated with the Fugakukai Organization.

Because I'm a native of West Virginia , I was interested in learning more about Sensei Allen's dojo. When I checked out the site (it is listed under dojo search on Aikiweb), I learned that Sensei Allen's dojo is no longer affiliated with the Fugakukai. There is a disclaimer message on the "Aikido" info page on the site.

Perhaps you could contact Sensei Allen and get some updated info on his current affiliation. Hope this helps!

Thank you a lot for you continuous support and information.
And, Louis : I couldn't acess John Allen's name on Aikiweb Dojo Search. Could you give me the site's URL? I'll contact Geis Sensei about Allen's departure from the Fugakukai.
Good guys, you two!

"We are all teachers, and what we teach is what we need to learn, and so we teach it over and over again until we learn it".
Unknown author